Friday, May 24, 2013

Attention Harry Potter enthusiasts! What are you up to the week of May 25 - June 2? If you're anywhere near the UK, you should pack up the cats and head to London for Animal Actors Week at the Warner Bros. Studio Tour. The studio, where all of the HP movies were filmed, opened its doors to the public last year, and gives fans the chance to explore the actual sets and props used in the making of the magical franchise.

Those lucky enough to attend the special event will have the chance to meet the cats who played Mrs. Norris and Crookshanks as they prowl around the Gryffindor common room (!), and pose for pics with owls who played Hedwig and Pigwidgeon. If that's not enough, you'll also have the opportunity to meet a Neapolitan Mastiff, trained like those who played Hagrid’s dog Fang, and go behind-the-scenes and learn how rats and toads, such as those who played Neville Longbottom’s toad Trevor and Ron Weasley’s rat Scabbers, were trained as animal actors.Meet our Twitter Litter

To help promote Animal Actors Week, the studio recently introduced the "Twitter Litter", a group of kittens who will be on hand to show how the evil Dolores Umbridge's lifelike porcelain kitten plates were created. Animal trainer Julie Tottman and her team used 40 kittens during filming, and will be recreating the process with these lil babies (all named by fans on Twitter), to show how they go from acting amateurs to skilled feline thespians. Meet the Twitter Litter:FletcherFleurMarblesNalaRitaNoxI am a big Harry Potter fan, and am figuring out how to apparate so I can steal meet Hedwig and Crookshanks as we speak. Animal Actors Week runs from May 25 - June 2 at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London. Get your tickets here.Via Warner Bros. Studio Tour London / Twitter (@WBStudioTour)

Crookshanks (And Kittens!) Come Out To Play During Animal Actors Week At Harry Potter Studio Tour